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Scotland (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Scotland => Renfrewshire => Topic started by: cgirl057 on Tuesday 14 June 05 08:29 BST (UK)
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I am looking for information on Auchentorlie house on seed hill road in paisley.
my grandmother was born there about 1912 and then given up to another family. (i would say adopted except there are no records at all that we know of, so i imagine she was just given away) i have not been able to find anything out about auchentorlie house. can anyone help??
thanks
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If you try a google search on Auchentorlie house ..... once you get past the history of the Buchanan family who had Auchentorlie House in Dumbartonshire you will find several references to Auchentorlie house in paisley .... many of these references appear to indicate that it was a nursing home and/or orphanage at some time in its life.
Certainly there is still a link in the area as you have Auchentorlie Quadrant in seedhill road near hawkhead road.
I admit I have often wondered where the street name came from.
you could try asking on http://www.paisley.org.uk/ if no one on rootschat can help.
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many thanks for that, i have done a few google searches myself, but have to admit to not finding much other than the Buchanan family.
i will look again though.
would you know out of interest if there would ever be record kept of adoptions. (i realise it was not necessary to have full paper work till around the 2o's but i find it hard to believe children were just given away freely)
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I'm not sure about the adoption paperwork although like you I suspect there should be ... but then again as I learn more about the past I am often surprised by many things our ancestors did.
Paisley records would have been held by Paisley Sheriff Court and subsequently transferred to the Crown Office and then on to National Archives Scotland.
Update .... re adoption .... Adoption as we understand it today did not come into being in Scotland until 1930 (slightly earlier in England)
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I don't know if you have had a look at http://195.153.34.3/dservea/ it is a searchable index of the documents held by NAS entr the surname you are searching on and any occurrences in the documents give you a reference number to the whole document.
I don't know if adoptions are included but divorces are and some relatively recent (no pun intended)
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my mother was born in aucentorilie hose in 1931 i agree there is very little info on the web but through the help of paisley libary who are in the process of opening poor law records i do have a little info
it was a specialist unit for the care of poor mothers sick children and foundlings
it was a kind of reception centre for the examination of poor and sick children who were then sent on to other orphanages around the renfrew area
i have found my granny was admited for the birth of my mother as she was suffering the early stages of tb
after the birth she was sent to gateshide hospital and my mother was put into the care of her father
i hope this helps if i get any more i will share it with you
love christine
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Auchentorlie house started as a grande home for the Buchanan family and finished as a hospital it was a specialist unit for the care of poor mothers sick children and foundlings
it was a kind of reception centre for the examination of poor and sick children who were then sent on to other orphanages around the area
Auchentolie house was knocked down and replaced with a beautiful home for the Thompson family who now own the land and have done so since the mid 20th Century at least... The remaining parts of the house are the ruins of a Laundry that sits next to Auchentolrlie dam, which is where the servants used to visit to do daily tasks
My family live on the land now, so it was strange to find your entry xxxxxxxxx
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thankyou for all that info
i was told it was a sort of half way house for mothers and children
a sort of reception centre where they were assesd before being moved on
my granny was actually dying from tb when she had my mother in 1931
she was moved to the smitheston hospital in greenock where she died in 1936
my mother ended up in carngeige park orphange in port glasgow
thank so much for filling in the missing details
love chrissey
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Hi Chrissy,
Just came across your entry re Auchentorlie House. The previous message re Buchanan is confusing as I am positive it refers to the better known Auchentorlie House in Dunbartonshire. The Paisley one you are referring to was at one time owned by a whisky broker by the name of Cattenach which was a large private house employing tutor, servants and coachman. The coachman was my greatgrandfather who lived in the lodge. If you search under the census 1881/1891/1901 it is still a private house. If you can find an old map it was in large grounds which is now part of Ciba and the old Seedhill Finishing Co.
Cheers
Liz
PS I keep meaning to go to the libary at Paisley as they have hundreds of photos as I would love to find out if they have any of Auchentorlie House at Seedhill.
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Whoever owned Auchentorlie House in Paisley, by the early 1900's it seems to be well linked with some form of Hospital work. It is listed as the contact address for a certified midwife in a 1918 Nursing Journal
http://rcnarchive.rcn.org.uk/data/VOLUME060-1918/page142-volume60-23rdfebruary1918.pdf
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i have a copy of that article
according to the archives at paisley they belive it was a medical facillity for the poor
mainly mothers and children
my mother was born there in march 1931
there may be more information coming out as poor law records have a 70 year closure on them
hopefully we will find out more
love chrissey
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Auchentorlie house started as a grande home for the Buchanan family and finished as a hospital it was a specialist unit for the care of poor mothers sick children and foundlings
it was a kind of reception centre for the examination of poor and sick children who were then sent on to other orphanages around the area
Auchentolie house was knocked down and replaced with a beautiful home for the Thompson family who now own the land and have done so since the mid 20th Century at least... The remaining parts of the house are the ruins of a Laundry that sits next to Auchentolrlie dam, which is where the servants used to visit to do daily tasks
My family live on the land now, so it was strange to find your entry xxxxxxxxx
Hi Andy
I have just come across your reply to an enquiry regarding Auchentorlie House. My late Mother was born there in 1929. I know from the poor law records that I found at Paisley Library that it was a place for mothers and children as it tells me thats where the Paisley parish council sent her mother. Her sister was sent to ?? Road whilst my mother was being born.
I.m desperately hoping that you may have some old photographs of the premises as for a long time now the trails do go cold when searching for Auchentorlie House and a lot link to the Auchentorlie at Dumbarton which I thinkare separate.
I know you posted your news a long time ago but am keeping my fingers crossed that you may see this messsage and have some old documentation concerning the place around.
Kindest regards
Cecilia
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Hi Celia,
The confusion is coming between Dumbartonshire and Paisley.(nothing to do with each other)
My grandfather was in Auchtenorlie House Paisley(as a coachman) which is at Seedhill, Paisley on the grounds of Ciba Geigy and the Seedhill Finishing Company. I think the one in Dumbartonshire was much more granduer!
Auchentorlie in Paisley (I have the census) was owned by the Cattanach family who were involved in the whisky business. After their deaths, according to my aunts memory it was taken over as a "poor hospital and home" Your best bet is getting in touch with Paisley Library as Auchentorlie changed many times after a private dwelling.
Liz
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i know when i first contacted paisley archives about it they had not opened the poor law records and had very little info about the use of it
i also would love to find out a bit more
chrissey
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Chrissey - there is an interesting article in the Paisley.Org about Paisley Mansions, including Auchentorlie house, which you may find interesting. It is listed under Paisley Mansions. Do hope you will have a look.
Best wishes,
Cuthie
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Cuthie,
Thanks for that. I have marked the site on my favourites as there is so
much information on Paisley. The pictures of the old houses are stunning.
Some of them I hadn't seen before. Interesting info re Auchentorlie, pity
no picture. A wee trek to the Paisley library soon I hope to see if they can unearth anything.
Thanks again
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thankyou for that site ref cuthie
its very interesting
chrissey
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I just received a response from the Poor Law staff at heritage@renfrewshire.gov.uk I found my grandmother on the poor law registry and gave them the series and statement number. She was able to tell me that my gran entered hospital with 2 of her daughters who were sick (we heard TB) and the 4 other children were taken to Auchentorlie House. Surprisingly, my Da never knew he had 4 sisters, he thought there were just those from Auchentorlie, his 2 sisters Susan And Elizabeth (Betsy) McPhee and a brother James. So his earliest memory was Auchentorlie House. He never found his older sister Susan, but he did have contact with James around the mid 1960's and later his sister Elizabeth who married a Robert (Bob) Williams and moved to Wales. They visited each other in the 1990's. Any info on Auchentorlie records or where children went afterwords, would be welcome.
Laura McPhee
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I'm sorry I do not have any further information on Auchentorlie House. I had it in my family tree when it was a private house and my great grandfather was a coachman there. I don't have any idea what happened to the private records or if the Renfrewshire Heritage site can be of more help. Good luck on your search. Lizanne x ps. Have you seen the site on facebook Missing People Scotland I would try that as it is very popular.
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I’m quite sure I heard that Auchentorlie House in Paisley was, at one time, a home for unmarried mothers. Girls would be sent there to have their babies. It is likely the babies would be given up for adoption. Sorry, I don’t know the era or whether records may have survived.
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Auchentorlie House became the property of Saucel Distillery and on the death of the company owner in 1910 his son, Lorimer Cattenach sold the house and grounds to Paisley Parish Council.
The council adapted the house and grounds as part of its Care facilities for Children and maternity cases (one report claims that it was used to provide care mainly for orphaned or abandoned children from "respectable" homes).
The House was used for this from 1910 to 1933.
Information from the book Postscripts to the Past (Lost mansions and Houses of Renfrewshire)by Dan Sweeney - the book also has a photograph showing the front portico of the House.
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I've just begun my research about Auchentorlie House in Paisley but i have a question....
My grandfather claims that he inherited, from his mother of the Cross family, an original deed for title to Auchentorle House in Paisley...?
All i know is that...my grandfather and his mother and family emmigrated to Canada in 1913, 3yrs after the Paisley Parish Council took over Auchentorlie House. My grandfather then later passed the document onto my uncle - it appears to have been an original but the document was unfortunately later destroyed in a fire.
From what i can gather....the title document didn't seem to hold any real significance for my grandfather other than sentimentally, i think. He did however, display it on his livingroom wall and passed it onto to my uncle - but he never returned to Paisley or try to claim any title.
So, what significance does this document actually have?
Does anyone know of the Cross family in Paisley?
And, did they in fact have anything to do with Auchentorlie House?
I'd be really interested to know and, i'd really appreciate any infomation that might help clear up this family mystery...!
Thanks :)
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That is very interesting. I live in Paisley and would be happy, on my next visit to the Central Library, to look into any records that were available for Auchentorlie House. I expect there would be records showing when it changed hands and to whom. I shall return to this thread and keep you informed of my progress
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Thank you LizL for your offer to help! That would be wonderful, if you are able to research information relating to the Cross family and Auchentorlie House :)
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I had a very successful find when I went through the Poor Law Records https://libcat.renfrewshire.gov.uk/iguana/www.main.cls?surl=PoorLaw
From there I learned all about the path my father-in-law took once being admitted to Auchentorlie House. I encourage you to start with the Poor Law Records.
Good luck!
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Thank you, I agree that the Poor Law records in Paisley are a wonderful resource. I think, however, the Heritage Centre may have further works and info on the history of Auchentorlie House itself. I shall certainly look into it. Thanks
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Tried to download photo of Auchentorlie House but it didn't work. I have a few census records of the Cattenach family from when my great grandparents lived in the lodge house.
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http://www.workhouses.org.uk/Paisley/